Well it's been almost 3 weeks since my Germany post and I'm sure everyone has been wondering how South Africa is. Well it's great . We landed in Jo-burg and instantly I noticed the heat, and its only spring time. We drive to a little community called Alabanza pop.15. well needless to say the first night wasnt at all a snore fest. There have been breakins lately in the house we were living and they told the men that they are very dangerous. so the men took turns and did patrol around the yards and i slept with a 2 foot crowbar for a week. they figured out who was the culprit so that gave us a relief. But it really shown me what I got myself into here. The rest of the week was great.  IN the mornings, we have cultural/ disipleship lessons and in the afternoon we would have, we would go to the townships. The J bay crew went to one township thinking that we would be going house to house with kids but instead, we worked.  In which, I loved it.  I got to work with my hands building bricks to make a new building and landscaping as well.  I met some new guys and built small relationships with the workers.  But making homemade bricks is incredibly hard. 
    Now the next week, we traveled to the country of Swaziland in the city of Manzini.  We lived in a huge house, adn the guys slept in tents.  In the afternoons, we again went to care points, squatter camps, and a hospital.  THe squatter camp was interesting.  These people lived in houses illegally.  They never even owned the houses they lived in.  We went and visited house to house and they would invite us so openly.  Most of them know who Christ is and follow Him regularly.  One interesting thing about this squatter camp is the school that they have there.  There are kids as young as four just having sex because there is nothing else to do.  And a grandma, named Gogo, hated this and asked the kids if they wanted a school, they would have to stop this lifestyle.  They agreed to the terms, and now there is a school there, but there is still a treeline there, where girls still go for money just to make ends meet, as if it were a job.  The care point that we visited, was just outside of Manzini.  It was a small village, and we visited the kids.  They would run up to you before you would even start walking towards them.  They would go and grab your hand and climb on you.  Most of the kids are either orphans, or their parents left them.  It hurts to see that, because these kids run up to you with arms wide open, because they do not get it anywhere else.  Then the hospital.  I went with a cringe already expecting the worst.  I walked around the creepy corridors, everyone looking at the white guy.  I go to the men's ward,  to my surprise there weren't many there (I'll explain why later).  So I go up to this elderly man, and his lip was three times larger than normal, purple and deteriorating.  I tried talking to him, but he doesn't speak hardly any english.  So I prayed for him for his lip, and so that he could understand me as well.  Then after that prayer, I see a man, with which I assume was a bible.  I asked him if he could come over and he understood and knew english.  He helped me translate to this man so that he could understand me.  Talk about prayers answered.  So he and I went to other men in the men's ward, spreading the word of God.  We then went to the private rooms, that this preacher goes to, and the things i saw were unimaginable.  Lots of the women were mostly naked on the beds.  Mostly with aids, TB, or malnutrition.  THere was one lady who didn't move at all, and basically looked dead.  The flies on her were crazy.  She was so thin, her legs were skinnier than my forearms/wrist.  It wasn't until I held her hand, that she moved a little bit, as if trying her very best to squeeze, but hardly succeeding.  Still motionless, and eyes still in the back of her head.  That was one of the many people I met that day with this preacher.  I asked him about the small amount of men in the hospital.  His response was that, when the men find out they are dying or have aids, they go and have as much sex as they can and drink as much until there is nothing left of them.  There is even a myth that if you have sex with a virgin, it will cure your HIV.  It is so insane how these people think about life and how much it is worth.  The estimation is by the time it is 2050, if things are still the same, Swaziland will be extinct.  We cannot do it ourselves, we have to show these people what to do.  North America cannot fix Swaziland, Swaziland can only fix Swaziland.  As FYMs we make disciples, and they go forward spreading the word, and preventing these things from happening. 
    Now, on a lighter note.  I went to a huge market, "The Manzini Market".  It was probably the sweetest place in town.  I could buy a huge sack of onions for 15Rand, which is like two dollars.  For people back in Price Albert, this is farmer's market paradise, and you can also barder with the price.  They already have the prices jacked up, so you can get the prices a lot lower.  I am not cheating them from their money, a normal wage is around 50rand a day.  There was a spear I totally wanted to buy, that was my size and already sharpened.  I went the next day to buy it, but the market closed early that day, which bummed me out.  They also had amazing cloths and designs as well.  To my bros back at home, I am trying to get something sweet if I can, but it is a surprise. 
    So wow, that was two weeks in a nutshell and I still ahve more to tell but can't write.  I am back in Alabanza and am doing more studying with work in the afternoon.  I will be leaving for Jeffery's Bay tomorrow and finally be able to call somewhere home, with my new family Chris, Christina, Tag, Holly, Aaryn, Chelsea, Matt, Jamie, Sarah, Tiffany, Cassie, Jenny, Melissa, Rachel, Raelynn, Larissa, Heather, Amber, Katie and Hillary.  Big family with lots of love.  I am also going to note that I will note be home for Christmas break.  I am going to travel around S. Africa and maybe to Mozan Bique.  Mozan Bique would be an opportunity of a lifetime, and would cost around 1000 rand to go.  So please pray for me, to see if that is where God wants me to travel, and also for safety throughout the rest of the months.  Again, thank you for your patience on what has been happening in Africa.  I will see you guys in May.  God Bless,
Ty Magee